Dominique Salas

from Unoriginal Danger

[THE ALMOST NOVIO, FERNIE, HAD ASKED]

the almost-novio, Fernie, had asked to be the novio while i drove

to bars, poker nights, bailing him out of jail. but he had driven

me to the party. when Waka Flocka Flame told me to do it

with no hands, i tried to party. but he saw me go feral-cat

wild with my ass on Jacob-Something & Co. so after Jacob-

Something dropped his girlfriend off at home, i was welcome to go back

to his friend’s house. they called it The Castle. and i entered and i peed and i

washed my hands and he walked in and switched the lock of the door and he

kissed me and it was good and it was good when he lifted me onto the sink, but

then we went into a bedroom, the one with shards, and there was where i

wanted to go with the almost-novio, but i did not get to. wet face in the shards,

knees on the sheets, sun rising outside, a voice saying, What did you expect

DOMINIQUE SALAS is a native of El Paso, Texas, and a PhD student at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Her work appears in Apogee, Huizache, and jubilat.